Chapter 0, Section 142: A Good Girl, Chudi
Using the pretense of urgent business, Qin Gou finally left the private room and headed directly towards Liang Tiantian’s location.
After all, this ‘Celestial Master’s Protection Token’ was not a one-time treasure; there would be plenty of opportunities in the future. For now, he’d let Little Ball cool down and collect his thoughts alone.
“Brother Qin!”
However, what greeted Qin Gou’s eyes next left him utterly dumbfounded.
Liang Tiantian, who had transformed into a white-robed immortal using the Jade Girl Chahun, was staring at him with desperate, pleading eyes. And sitting opposite him was none other than his own mother… the unrestrained Madam Shen.
“Brother Qin, according to Madam Shen, she’s currently unable to meet Sister Guiyun directly due to certain special circumstances. She also heard that among all the trial participants, only I, Chudi, have the best relationship with Sister Liang Guiyun. So, she wanted to inquire about Sister Guiyun’s performance during this trial.”
Liang Tiantian, with a voice full of anxiety, as if a mouse had just spotted a cat, said, “It’s just unfortunate that during this trial, I didn’t have much contact with Sister Guiyun.”
On one hand, he was extremely worried about his disguise being exposed, and on the other hand, like his father Liang Zhuxiao, the person Liang Tiantian feared the most in his life and dared not defy was his mother, Madam Shen.
“I see.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Gou breathed a sigh of relief and said with a faint smile, “Madam Shen’s desire for her daughter to excel is understandable. I am one of the referees for this trial. I can assure Madam that Liang Guiyun is doing very well. She emerged from the trial completely unharmed. However, due to some unforeseen circumstances, it seems all the results from this trial will be invalidated.”
Strictly speaking, within the secret realm earlier, ninety percent of the participants, including Liang Guiyun, hadn’t even had the chance to do anything significant.
“Unforeseen circumstances?”
“Indeed. This is not a secret; Hidden Immortal Tower will soon make a public announcement. Furthermore, as far as I know, the Spirit of the Ancestral Land is already considering preparing a new trial.”
Seeing this, Madam Shen nodded and cupped her fists. “Since Yun’er is alright, that’s all that matters. Thank you, Fellow Daoist Qin, for informing me.”
“It’s a trivial matter. Madam Shen, there’s no need for such politeness,” Qin Gou replied with a gentle smile, appearing as if he were an integral part of Hidden Immortal Tower.
“However, I still have one question that requires Miss Chudi’s direct answer.”
Suddenly, Madam Shen looked back at Liang Tiantian, her phoenix eyes narrowing slightly, and said word by word, “Where is my son, Liang Tiantian?”
In an instant, Qin Gou’s eyelids twitched violently, and Liang Tiantian felt as if his scalp were about to explode. His voice trembled, “I… I don’t know, Madam Shen, what do you mean?”
As if on cue, Madam Shen gently flicked a finger. Spiritual power rippled outward like water, and a flawless white protective jade amulet shot out from Liang Tiantian’s embrace, landing steadily in Madam Shen’s palm.
“Because my son, Tiantian, is willful and unpredictable, I secretly placed a small tracking spiritual array within his protective amulet. Madam Shen stared directly at Liang Tiantian, her suspicion evident. “In other words, this item belongs to my son, Tiantian. How could it have ended up in Miss Chudi’s possession?”
Liang Tiantian’s face turned pale. He never expected his own mother to have such a contingency. “Because… because…”
“Because this item was personally gifted to our Chudi by your young master,” Qin Gou interjected preemptively, knowing this young man was usually quite dim-witted, let alone in this situation.
“Fellow Daoist Qin even knows about this?” Madam Shen looked at Qin Gou with surprise.
Qin Gou smiled and nodded. “After all, this happened at Star-Shifting Pavilion. When Hidden Immortal Tower was selecting reserve saintesses there, I was present. I witnessed the entire event with my own eyes.”
“Then this jade amulet…”
“Madam, you may not know this, but Chudi once admired your son greatly. Alas, fate played its hand, and it seemed your son already had someone else in his heart at the time. So, he could only politely decline Chudi’s affections, leaving her with only this jade amulet!”
As he spoke, Qin Gou cast a half-sincere, half-blaming glance at Liang Tiantian. “But I never expected that to this day, Chudi would still wear this jade amulet constantly, never parting with it.”
“Is this true?” Madam Shen’s gaze also shifted to Liang Tiantian.
“Yes!” With Qin Gou paving the way, Liang Tiantian quickly steered the focus. “Madam Shen, could it be that you suspect Chudi forcibly took this? Chudi is willing to swear to the heavens that in my heart, Young Master Tiantian is as important as my own life. How could I possibly harm him!”
This was a completely redundant statement, but to Madam Shen’s ears, it brought both surprise and joy.
After so many years, her rascal of a son was finally having a somewhat normal interaction with a female cultivator again.
“Then do you know where my son Tiantian is now?”
“I don’t know.”
Liang Tiantian shook his head. Under Qin Gou’s subtle signal, he deliberately shifted the topic back to the tragic love story between Chudi and Tiantian, his eyes distant. “Young Master Tiantian seems to want to deliberately avoid me! But I vaguely feel that he might simply not want to ruin my future because of himself. After all, I was successfully selected as a reserve saintess at that time, and the next step was to come to Hidden Immortal Tower to compete for the Mistress of Ten Thousand Flowers!”
“You…”
Upon hearing this, Madam Shen couldn’t help but give a bitter smile. She knew her son’s tastes very well! That rascal probably hadn’t even given this good girl named ‘Chudi’ a second glance from beginning to end. She really deserved a beating!
“You poor child, you think far too highly of my son!” Madam Shen sighed with a sense of loss. Stroking the protective jade amulet in her hand, she continued, “Since this item now belongs to you, why haven’t you removed the spiritual imprint belonging to Tiantian from it? Was that intentional?”
“I couldn’t bear to part with it,” Liang Tiantian, under immense pressure, finally struggled to control the tension and indecisiveness in his expression. However, after Qin Gou had directly labeled him as a lovesick maiden with humble devotion, everything seemed to fall into place logically.
This made Madam Shen feel increasingly sympathetic the more she looked. After returning the protective jade amulet to Liang Tiantian, she asked in a deep tone, “You said earlier that Tiantian seems to be deliberately avoiding you? Have you tried contacting him via Spirit Power Transmission?”
Liang Tiantian scratched his head and honestly replied, “Young Master Tiantian has never given me any transmission credentials. Moreover… from a certain point onward, whenever Chudi was present, Young Master Tiantian would absolutely not show himself. It seems we can never appear at the same time.”
“That rascal is being so heartless?” Madam Shen’s dark eyebrows suddenly furrowed. “He’s becoming more and more ill-mannered. If I catch him…”
“Auntie, please don’t say that,” Liang Tiantian said hurriedly, his heart in a panic. “Actually, ever since Chudi decided to officially set off for Hidden Immortal Tower, she no longer wished for anything else. Young Master Tiantian is not wrong; rather, he has fulfilled me.”
“You’re still speaking up for that kid!”
Madam Shen’s eyes were filled with affection, her heart melting.
At the same time, she desperately wanted someone to bring her son back to his senses. She reached out and placed a hand on Liang Tiantian’s shoulder. “That rascal is cold and ungrateful, but I, his mother, am not. Isn’t he deliberately avoiding you? I have plenty of ways to deal with him!”
Upon hearing this, both Qin Gou and Liang Tiantian felt a sense of foreboding.
Immediately after, Madam Shen’s voice, filled with affection and admiration, rang out.
“Chudi, from this day forward, the doors of Lang Chen Escort Agency will always be open to you. May I take you as my adopted daughter!”
